Doing more than cramming a couple of cans in my son’s bookbag.
Sometimes life’s irony hits you right between the eyes and lodges in your brain.
Thoughts that irate the heck out of you.
Today, in the interest of multitasking, I walked the dog over to a friend’s place of employment.
A bit anxious how lack of activity will affect my menopot once the weather turns cold and dark, I asked her to acquire some appetite suppressants for me.
Why not start on the offensive before the holidays?
That’s not the irony — just the pathetic truth.
After I got my stash of supplements, on the trot home I listened to a broadcast of a international ministry I give money too. Once again multitasking. Walking dog, going on errand, feeding my spirit.
That’s when the trouble started.
The program I listened to this morning was about a food ministry in a large metropolitan area. How a particular family had been helped.
I was moved by this man’s story. Who wouldn’t be?
Then irony hit and messed with my day.
I was listening to a story about a food ministry walking home with a carton of appetite suppressants.
BAM.
The uber-ginormous weight loss industry earns multimillions in a world where people with jobs can’t feed their families an entire week without help.
Now I know this isn’t any big new revelation but today I took it personally and felt pretty foolish.
Many years ago a woman approached me for money in front of a supermarket. For some reason, “Come on in with me, I’ll buy you what you need” came out of my mouth.
As this young woman and I wandered about the story putting items in a basket, she picked out lots of staples. Milk, bread, baloney and eggs.
I went home and opened up my cupboards and saw all the food stacked in there.
Even with a surplus that could feed a small village in a teensy country on the other side of midnight, it occurred to me that I still went to the store — day after day — to buy more food because evidently we didn’t have enough.
I’ve written about and worked regularly with local organizations that provide food for those in need.
I’ve explored why low income families eat a majority of high calorie, low nutrition food. I’ve seen children throw away half their school lunches because it didn’t excite their taste buds. I also know that some take advantage of what is in place to render aid.
Don’t really know the purpose of this post is except maybe to put it on public record that I need to do more than cram a couple of cans in my son’s book bag this time of year.
And I’m really tired of thinking about it.
Any ideas?
